Photon Art
Photon Arts are a recurring gameplay mechanic in the Phantasy Star series. They are the successor to Phantasy Star Online's Special Moves, and debuted in Phantasy Star Universe as powerful, unique moves that the player may learn through special disks and equip to weapons. Phantasy Star Nova utilizes the Gran Arts instead, which are identical to Online 2's concept and usage of Photon Arts. The name change relates to Gran, the energy source present on Machia in place of Photons. Phantasy Star Universe Series In the Universe saga, Photon Arts are divided into three categories: Skills, Bullets, and TECHNICs. Although their specific functions vary, they all share common traits, in that they must be tied to a weapon in order to activate, and consume a large amount of PP to cast. In order to learn a Photon Art, one must use a Photon Art Disc to learn the Photon Art. This attaches the Photon Art to the character permanently. It can then be upgraded by casting the Photon Art in combat, which gives it experience. When it gains enough experience, the Art levels up, granting additional properties based on the type of Photon Art used. In Ambition of the Illuminus and the Portable series, Photon Arts may later be returned to disc form by unequipping it from your character. Discs acquired this way retain its Level and all EXP it has earned, allowing another character on the same account to easily learn it. However, these discs may not be traded or sold between other players. The three types of Photon Arts are as follows: * Skills are Photon Arts that can be bound to melee-type weapons. One Skill can be bound to a weapon at a time, and each weapon has specific Photon Arts that it can learn. Leveling up a Skill increases potency. At certain intervals, it may learn an additional hit to its attack. * Bullets are elemental Photon Arts that can be fired by ranged weapons. Like a Skill, each weapon has a specific series of Bullets that it is capable of using. Leveling up a Skill increases the potency of its elemental attribute and the severity of its status effects. * TECHNICs are spell-like Photon Arts that can be bound to tech weapons. Tech weapons are capable of having multiple TECHNICs bound to them at once; binding multiple TECHNICs of the same element boosts the strength of all of that element TECHNIC. TECHNICs are elemental in nature, and come in one of six elements. Upgraded versions can also be acquired that sacrifice power for area of effect abilities. There are additionally support TECHNICs such as Resta and Giresta that heal players. Phantasy Star Online 2 In Phantasy Star Online 2, the Photon Arts system has been overhauled; there is no longer any distinction between any types of Photon Arts, and multiple Arts may be bound to a weapon at once, shifting gameplay towards using Photon Arts as the primary method of attack. Furthermore, Techniques and Photon Arts are now distinguished from each other and are not considered the same, but are otherwise learned identically. As with Universe, Photon Arts may be learned by picking up Discs that can be bought from various shops or found on the battlefield. However, the level of the Art is now tied to the Level of the Disc acquired, and Level no longer has any relation to the actual performance of the Photon Art; higher levels simply mean an increase in power. This attribute is meaningless for certain Photon Arts that do not utilize the Power stat. Discs now require a certain value in the ATK stat to learn; the higher the Level of the Disc, the more ATK is needed to learn it. Phantasy Star Online 2es Phantasy Star Online 2es, while using the Photon Arts introduced in Phantasy Star Online 2, uses the Chip system to handle gameplay. As such, Photon Arts and Techniques take the form of Chips. Photon Arts and Techniques come in the form of Active Chips. These Chips may be acquired through item drops, Scratches, or the Exchange Shop. Each Photon Art is bound to a specific weapon, and can only be activated if that weapon is currently equipped to the player. To use a Photon Art, the respective Chip must be added to a slot in the player's active Deck. Photon Arts and Techniques come in four levels: * 1, which takes the form of a Common/Uncommon Chip * 2, which takes the form of a Rare Chip * 3, which takes the form of a Super Rare Rare 10 Chip * EX, which takes the form of a Super Rare Rare 11 Chip, depicting a PSO2 NPC in its art While performance itself does not change between levels, the Cost needed to equip them, the CP needed to activate them in combat, and the strength of the Chip rises as the level increases. The Chip may be upgraded to a + version to further bolster its capabilities. Photon Arts and Techniques otherwise function similarly to their main game counterpart. In battle, the Chip can be tapped to activate a powerful move that consumes CP. Photon Arts and Techs are unique among Actives in that there's no uptime or cooldown for them other than the attack's animation, allowing the player to use them as long as CP permits. Phantasy Star Nova Due to the lack of Photons on the planet Machia, the terminology Gran Art is used in place of Photon Art. Techniques otherwise remain the same. Gran Arts and Techniques are very similar in function to their Online 2 counterpart, with a few differences. Unlike previous entries in the series, Gran Arts are no longer learned in Disc form; instead, Gran Arts are learned and upgraded by bringing Materials to the Class Counter. As the Level of the Gran Art rises, the Power increases, as well as the number of Materials needed to upgrade to the next level. Category:Game mechanics